In the field of archival data storage, it is frequently necessary to store audio-visual information. Adding digital information by means of a small laser recorder could be of considerable value for stored X-ray pictures, CAT-scan pictures, microscope photographs, NMR and ultrasonic scan pictures, and other diagnostic images. Such add-on records have a potential of getting separated from the recorded film during storage in medical archives. Even if not separated, the differences in archival storage properties, say between film and paper, pose storage problems.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,236,332, Domo discloses a wallet-size medical record card to be carried by the individual containing a microfilm portion having some data visible to the eye and other data visible by magnification. The directly visible data is code characters pertaining to emergency medical conditions of the patent and the magnifiable data portions detail the medical history. Such cards are not intended for archival storage and cannot be used for that purpose. Cards cannot contain X-ray pictures, CAT-scan pictures and the like without loss of vital image resolution.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,110,010, Johnson et al. add bar codes along the edge of microfilm having image areas. These codes are used by the film reader to locate the desired frame. Bar codes are rather limited in the type and amount of information they can represent, so their use with detailed medical information is undesirable.
An object of the invention is to provide recorded medical information, such as a diagnosis, directly on a medium with an accompanying visual image, such as an X-ray picture, CAT-, NMR-, or ultrasonic-scan picture or microscope photograph.
A further object of the invention is to record the information either prior to, during, or after exposure forming the visual image.
A further object of the invention is to record standard alphanumeric diagnoses, doctor composed spoken diagnoses or other recorded spoken words in combination with a medical picture on a storage medium, such as film.